EternalBound
by SilverRose27
Summary: Sequel to 'SurpriseStuck' Damon seems to know more than he lets on. For some reason, John doesn't trust him at all. When mysterious things keep happening to Karkat, secrets will become uncovered. Is the game really done screwing them over? Will John be proved right? And will they figure it out before it's too late? Who is Damon really? Drama-humor-Romance
1. Chapter 1

**Kyaaa! Hey guys! Yeah, I know I've been gone forever, but here is the sequel I promised!**

**This will be longer than '**_**SurpriseStuck!'**_

**And also my sister attacked me with something that looked like peanut butter, but turned out to be some sort of facial mask. I feel violated… But my face is soft…**

**Disclaimer!**

Karkat sighed when he woke up. John was gone. He stretched and winced slightly. He blushed, even though he was alone. He felt a bit sore from the night before. It was sort of in a good way though. His hand hit something—paper, he decided—on the pillow that John had used. He grabbed onto the paper and brought it to his face.

_**Sorry I'm not there. Had stuff to do! But I'll see you later!**_

_**-Love, John**_

_**PS – next time, we WILL watch 'Con Air.' You don't have a choice. It's destiny!**_

"Pfft. Such a derp," Karkat said fondly. He glanced at the clock. _It's only ten-thirty? Why the fuck am I awake? _But he knew he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep. He rubbed his eyes and rolled out of bed.

He decided he wanted to take a shower, which was weird for him. He hated showering in the morning. There was no fucking point. You get dirty during the day, and you should shower before bed, that way you don't get shit in your bed. But then again, he sometimes showered both. Now he actually had a purpose.

After his shower (which may, or may not have taken 30 minutes…) he let the fog clear and looked in the mirror. His eyes were completely filled in bright red_. His_ red. They still faintly glowed, but that was to be expected after officially 'sealing' a Matespritship. He put on his SX-Band, cursing when he realized he didn't know how to change the eye-function. That was just another reason why he had to go see Sollux.

He suddenly gasped and doubled over. _What… what is this? It burns! My… my scars? What the hell—ahhh!_

"Ahhh!" He didn't realize he was screaming out loud. He didn't even notice that he had fallen to the floor. His scars had ached faintly before, but who's don't? But lately, like for the last four days, it had been getting worse. _Since going to the club… and meeting him… _But he knew that was stupid. A person couldn't cause scars to hurt!

_Oh hey…. I'm on the floor now… I knew these rugs were a good idea. Fuck Kanaya's taste. They aren't tacky… Oh, fuck…. Am I passing out? I—AH!_

"Ahhhh!" Nope. Another searing burst of pain ripped through him. It was more through his stomach this time. From Jack's scar. _Why can't I just fucking pass out already? It hurts…._

"Karkat? Karkat!"

"Gam—Ah!"

"I got you, best friend. What happened, motherfucker?"

"I-I don't…" He couldn't get the words out. He was dimly aware of being lifted. Gamzee's face came in to focus after a minute. His eyes were wide and he was frowning. That didn't sit well with Karkat.

"What's all up and got you in such a twist?"

"I don't know. I was getting dressed in the bathroom—" oh fuck, was he naked? No, he remembered putting boxers and a t-shirt on. "—and my scars started to burn. I couldn't breathe…"

"You're lucky I was in the motherfuckin' neighborhood, then. That shit just ain't cool, Karbro."

"Y-you can put me down now, Gamzee. I'm better. It doesn't hurt so bad—what the fuck are you doing!?"

Gamzee didn't answer. He lifted the hem of Karkat's t-shirt, examining him.

"Whoa. That is some twisted shit, motherfucker. Ain't no Mirthful Miracles here today…"

"What? What's wrong?"

"They don't look like old scars anymore, Karbro. They're all up and angry lookin'."

He struggled to sit up, which was hard because Gamzee still didn't let go. Finally, Gamzee braced his back with one of his fucking huge hands. When he looked down, he really wished he hadn't. Where there had been white marks before, there were now angry pinkish red marks. Jack's scar was the worst of all. It looked like it was fresh out of the bandages. He half expected it to bleed when he ran his fingers over it. It didn't, but it hurt. He also noticed that all of his other scars, the ones that you could barely see, where also now pink and angry-looking. He lifted up the pant leg of his boxers slightly and saw that the one on his thigh was the same.

"I think you should get checked up on."

"I think you mean a check-up."

"That's what I motherfuckin' said. You could ask Kanaya—"

"Maybe later."

"What?"

"I have something to do now." Gamzee frowned at him. Karkat sighed."I promise I will ask someone or go to the doctor." Gamzee raised an eyebrow.

"I don't think it's a good idea to wait, bro. What if this happens while you're driving? That won't be good for you or your shit. Especially on your motherfuckin' bike."

"I don't need you to be my lusus. I said that I'm fine. Don't your scars hurt sometimes?"

"Well yeah, but they don't look motherfucking angry. That shit don't look healthy."

"Gamzee… When did your scars last hurt?"

"Um… I don't motherfucking know—wait… I think they hurt a little bit when we were at that club. I thought that was weird because it's full of Miracles and magic. But four days ago, they stung a little bit… Motherfucking weird, y'know?"

"Yeah… that is fucking weird…"_That's… it must be a coincidence. I'm just fucking paranoid. Oh wait, is he talking? _"Wait, what did you say?"

"I _said, _I just don't want you motherfuckin' hurt, okay? Be careful."

"I will. I'm not a fucking grub, you know!" Gamzee chuckled and ruffled Karkat's hair.

"I know." He sat Karkat down on the couch.

"Gamzee?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't tell anyone yet. No point in making them worry over nothing. I'll get myself checked out."

"Alright, bro."

"Oh, and Gamzee? How the hell did you get in here? I locked the window last night."

"…"

7777

Two hours and an awkward explanation of a broken window later, Karkat was leaving. He walked through the parking garage of his place, towards his car. He didn't really like cars that much, but they could be convenient sometimes. As he neared his black 2010 Camaro with two silver-grey racing stripes, he realized that he just had no desire to drive a car today.

He grinned as he revved the engine on his motorcycle. John would kill him if he knew. Karkat loved his motorcycle, but John had a deep disapproval of them. He said something about a neighbor getting in an accident when he was a kid. He doubted he could give up his baby. He built it himself. Well, Sollux had helped a little, and so had Equius. But it was mostly him. It had taken forever to find all of the parts he wanted and put it together. And after that, he had it custom painted. It was silvery grey with occasional black spirals and intricate designs. There were red designs too, and they glowed a muted red color. He had installed those veins himself, and was proud of it. The red veins reminded him of fire or lava.

Some part of his brain scolded him. He knew that with the 'episode' he'd earlier, he shouldn't be driving a motorcycle. But driving in a car made him feel trapped. He knew Sollux felt the same most of the time too. Sollux had made his own motorcycles and was always upgrading them with more technology. Karkat had no idea why he needed all of that. He liked his motorcycle the way it was.

Sollux lived about twenty minutes away, in the complete opposite direction of John's house. Karkat soaked in the fresh air, loving the warmth of the sun on his back and the wind on his face. He liked the feeling of it through his hair too, but his helmet kind of cut most of that off. Sollux lived in a three story (wait, aren't basements only a half-story?) house. It was an old house, and Karkat wondered why he chose it. He figured that Sollux would choose to build his own high-tech mansion.

The stairs to the house creaked as he walked up them.

No turning back now.

**Kyaa! Okay, how was that? I kind of rushed a bit… And no beta right now. Just felt like posting.**

**Next chapter: Will Sollux forgive him? What about his scars?**

**Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Kyaa! Hehe, Thanks for your nice reviews, guys!**

**OHH, and I forgot to tell you! I found the perfect theme song for this series!**

**LISTEN TO 'Courtesy Call' by Thousand Foot Krutch! It seriously fits sooo well!**

**Attention! I know that everyone wants to say that Karkat's birthday is June 12****th**** or whatever, but if you look it up, he wouldn't be a Cancer. I looked up all needed info—and didn't feel like doing math, so I chose when his Birthday would be.**

**Which just so happens to be my Birthday as well… coincidence… nah…**

**Disclaimer!**

Karkat froze. Fuck, what was he supposed to say? But it was too late, he'd already knocked. Actually, he was still knocking. Fuck it, he'd have to make it up as he went. He reached for the doorbell—wait, why didn't he do that first?

"Fuck! I heard you knocking, gogdamnit! I'm coming!"

Karkat almost wished Sollux wasn't home. The door swung open to reveal a very tired and irritated looking Sollux. When he recognized Karkat he sighed.

"KK, if you're coming to th—_someone's_ hou_se_, you should at lea_s_t take off your helmet tho you don't look like an _ass."_ Oh yeah. He mentioned something about speech therapy to help him get rid of his lisp…. He realized that Sollux was still looking at him expectantly. _What—oh. The helmet… _He pulled his helmet off and sighed, rubbing his hair back down.

"Tho, what did you want?"

"I… I don't know…"

"…"

"Don't look at me like that!"

"How am I th—supposed to look at you?"

"Can I just come in?" Sollux thought for a second and nodded, moving aside. Karkat stepped through the doorway, wincing as the old floorboards creaked. "Why did you choose this hive—er, house? All that creaking is driving me fucking insane!" There. He was better at dealing with shit when he was annoyed. It was something familiar.

"It's quiet." Sollux wasn't a fan of the city because he didn't like being crowded. It's not like it was a bad house, it was just old. The walls were a creamy yellow in most rooms, but Karkat thinks that's just because it faded.

~Insert awkward silence here~

"I… I'm fucking sorry, okay!?" Sollux looked surprised.

"For what?"

"What do you mean 'for what'?"

"I meant 'for what.'"

"I blew up on you! You should be pissed at me! I'm an asshole!"

"Kk, this may come as a surprise to you, but not everyone obsesses over that shit. Yeah, you were an ass, but that's just who you are."

"… Thanks for that, Captor." Sarcasm. Sollux half smirked.

"Anytime."

"That speech therapy is working pretty well for you."

"It's fucking annoying. I still slip up a lot when I get stressed. In the end I bought the tapes. I tried an actual class at first. That guy was an idiot. I managed one day, and that was it. You wouldn't have lasted through an hour without getting arrested."

"Give me _some _credit, you douchenozzle!"

"Eheh, maybe if you earned it, KK. You finished going through the codes I gave you?"

"…"

"That's what I thought. You th—thtill—fuck! You _still suck!"_

"I'm not that bad!"

"Uh-huh."

"Asswipe."

"Ouch, that hurts. And here I was, working on something special for your wriggling day…"

"My wriggling day?" Sollux gave him an exasperated look.

"You know, the day you came into existence?"

"But that was—"

"Shit, I meant 'birthday.' You know, the one John gave you when he didn't feel like doing the math? It's coming up… Did you really forget?"

"Fuck! Why does he insist on this?"

"Because everyone lives to make you miserable, KK."

"They do, don't they? What the fuck ever. Just show me whatever it is that you want to show me."

Sollux rolled his eyes and nodded. In his human form, they were still each a different color. The blue one was still blue, but the red one had to be darkened to a brownish color. His hair was a blondish brown color, and he was kind of pale.

"Oh, and you can take off your band. Nobody ever comes over here."

"Probably scared of they guy who almost never leaves his house. They can probably hear when you use your Alternian blow-torch. Those things aren't exactly quiet." He started to take off hos band before he remembered the second reason for coming here. "Fuck! I almost forgot. I need you to fix the eye-setting. You can still see the red through it." Sollux furrowed his brow.

"It shouldn't. I programmed all of them to change when you do."

"We also didn't think my eyes would change. But here they are, hideously bright red."

"KK, seriously? Do we have to have a fucking feelings-jam right now? You know that nobody even fucking cares about that shit. I never did."

"Equius and Eridan."

"Equius? Who the fuck cares? It's not like he'd try anything. You're Gamzee's Moirail. And Eridan? _Eridan?_ I'm going to pretend you didn't say that name."

"What the fuck ever, Captor. Just fix the damn thing!"

"Hold out your arm."

Karkat held out his arm, and Sollux turned the band's dial a little. He looked back at Karkat and growled a little.

"What did _I _do?"

"Have a horrible genetic makeup." Karkat flinched. "Fuck! I'm thorry. I didn't mean… I jutht… fuck…" He paused for a second. "I don't think it'th compatible with your mutation… I honestly didn't think that your blood would make any problem, but apparently it's really strong… I'm not sure how to deal with this… I'll have to show you your present another time, KK. I need to work on your SX-Band." Karkat knew that was a sign that he was dismissed because Sollux was going to his lab. But there was one small problem.

"Then how the fuck am I supposed to get back?"

"You have your helmet, don't you? Just borrow one of my jackets, and there are some gloves in the coffee-table drawer. That should cover you up pretty well."

"But what about John?"

"What about him?"

"He's coming over later!"

"So?"

"He doesn't know I ride! He hates motorcycles!"

"What time is he supposed to be there?"

"In about a half hour."

"Well, I suppose that's how long you have to get there without him noticing. Better get going, KK."

"Fuck you, Captor!"

7777

Karkat was speeding, but he didn't care. He could outride any cop. He made a twenty minute trip into a twelve minute trip. He raced through the parking garage before getting to his spot. He didn't have time to put the cover on his motorcycle, so he just hopped off and took the keys, praying he'd remember to do so and that John wouldn't get suspicious about a motorcycle parked right next to his car. He was about to take off his helmet, but he forgot that he didn't have his SX-Band. Fuck! It was too hot outside for this shit! He was also wearing one of Sollux's jackets (that was too big) and a pair of Sollux's gloves. He ran through the garage and into the apartment complex. He was pretty sure he gave the old lady from the apartment down the hall a heart attack. He couldn't blame her. He was clad from head to toe in black and had a helmet covering his face. His phone buzzed.

**Txt msg from: John Egbert**

**im here! be up in a sec **

"Fuck!" He quickly tossed his helmet in the shoe closet and ripped of the gloves. He shoved them in the coffee-table drawer and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to make sure he didn't have helmet hair.

_**Knock knock knock!**_

"Karkat!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" He paused for a second. "Are you alone in the hallway?"

"Uh, yeah. I mean, I saw that one old lady—Mrs. Morris—a little bit ago. She looked like she'd seen a ghost. What was that about?"

"How the fuck should I know?"

"Well, you live here. Are you going to open the door?"

"Yeah."

He turned the knob quickly and yanked John inside, slamming the door behind him. John looked at him, confused.

"Why did you do that?"

"…"

"Oh! Where's your SX-Band?"

"There was something wrong with it. Well, technically it was something wrong with _me_ but Sollux said he could fix it."

"What do you mean 'something wrong with you?' Are you sick? Is it because of your mutation? Oh no! It's making you sick, isn't it?"

"Fuck, no—Why do you think I'm sick?" _I swear if that clown said one word…_

"You're wearing a jacket in June! Are you okay?" John's eyes were wide and he looked very worried. Fuck! He forgot about Sollux's jacket!

"I… It was really fucking cold in Sollux's hive, okay? He let me borrow a jacket. I was gonna take it off, but then you knocked on the door. This thing is too fucking big anyways." It really was. He had the sleeves rolled up, but they kept falling down. The bottom of the jacket came to his mid-thigh. Sollux had grown pretty tall—not as tall as Gamzee, but still tall. "I look just fucking like Nepeta!"

"Aw, I think it looks cute! But you'll overheat if you keep that on…" John seemed reluctant to help him take it off, but he did. "So what did you mean that something was wrong with you?"

"I'm not sure exactly. He programmed them all the same pretty much. They entwine with our DNA a little bit so they can get an idea of our genetic makeups. That way they get an accurate reading of how we would look if we were human. He said something about my blood being too potent for the thing to handle. It probably would have just stopped working eventually anyways. I'm just one big clusterfuck of problems for everyone to deal with, aren't I?"

"Karkat!"

"What?"

"Don't talk like that! Geez, I mean, I know you have issues with your blood color and stuff, but I really like it. As long as it doesn't make you sick, I don't care if you're a mutant freak. You're my mutant freak!"

"…"

"W-wait, I didn't mean that you _are _a freak, I meant... fuck! I don't—"

"Egbert, for the love of fuck, just shut up!"

"I'm sorry…"

"Don't apologize, idiot. I suppose that was a sweet gesture. Though you failed miserably at it."

"Your encouragement is enlightening."

"I try." He noticed that John had something in his hand. "What's that?"

John grinned and Karkat wished he wouldn't have asked. He held up the bag he had in his hand.

"I brought 'Con Air'!"

"I don't want to watch that stupid excuse for human cinema."

"But you saaaaid!"

"I say a lot of things."

"Kaaarkaaaat!"

"No."

John quickly closed the space between them and pulled Karkat into a kiss.

"What about now?"

"Still no."

"Hehe, need more _convincing?"_

"Maybe…" John happily obliged, kissing him again. Karkat missed this. He also thought it was stupid that he had missed this. It was just one day! John smiled at him and adjusted his glasses. His green t-shirt was a bit rumpled now, but he didn't seem to mind."

"Plus, I knew you wouldn't watch one of mine without us watching one of yours too! So I bought _this,"_ He said, holding up a DVD. It was 'When in Rome.' Karkat hadn't seen that one yet. "But we're watching yours second."

"The hell we are!"

"I need something to keep you awake and motivated! If we watch yours first, you'll just fall asleep or try to distract me during 'Con Air' and—well, maybe I wouldn't mind a bit of _distracting…" _Karkat couldn't help but smile at that. The John suddenly shook his head. "Wait, no! No distractions! You have to watch, no, _experience_ the majestic manliness that is 'Con Air.'"

"Pfft. Anything with Nic Cage in it can't be good." John pulled him back up, but didn't kiss him.

"Watch yourself, Vantas."

"Don't do that."

"Do what?"

"Call me by my last name. It just doesn't fucking sound right coming from you."Karkat headed for the kitchen.

"Dave does it."

"So? I don't give a fuck what that nookstain Strider calls me."

"How come you don't like each other?" John was in the living room, putting in the DVD while Karkat was making popcorn and grabbing snacks.

"He's a douche and I'm an ass."

"Hehe, whatever you say. How come you can get along with Dirk?"

"Because we like the same—" Oops. He was never supposed to tell! "Games and shit."

"Dave and Dirk have pretty similar taste."

"The older Strider isn't as much of a douche. Still a douche, but…"

"Is the popcorn done yet?"

"No, the microwave exploded and that's why the popping stopped."

"Sounds terrible. I bought some candy, but I didn't know what you'd…Uh…" Karkat was walking in the living room, bowl of popcorn in one hand and a ton of candies in the other. His arms were seriously crowded with sugary snacks.

"What?"

"That's… a lot of sugar."

"Yeah. I'm not going to eat all of it, I just didn't know what you'd want."

"Gummy worms, cookie-dough bites, Crunch bites, Goobers, Twizzlers, candy corn, M&M's, Skittles… Jesus, Karkat! How are you not like five hundred pounds?"

"Egbert…"

"You eat a ton!"

"…"

"Karkat?"

7777

About twenty minutes later that night, they still hadn't started the movie yet. John said something about dinner and Karkat merely shrugged. John ordered pizza from the place down the street and it got there pretty quick. He picked up a slice, and was about to take a bite when he realized something. Karkat wouldn't eat.

"Karkat, eat something!"

"No."

"You haven't eaten at all today, have you?"

"No."

"Well you need to eat something!"

"Apparently I eat _too much."_

"Wha-? Karkat! I didn't mean it like that! I just mean that so much sugar can't be healthy…" Karkat sighed.

"I guess you _would _think that…"

"You can't blame this on troll anatomy! Kanaya and Rose told me—"

"About _normal_ troll anatomy."

"You _are_ normal—"

"No, John. I'm not. I'm mutated, remember? I mean, I _look_ the part. I even have all of the organs. Do they work the same? Probably, for the most part. But there are certain things we've noticed. Like… well, it's kind of the human disease called hypoglycemia. Not exactly though… Why the fuck is this so fucking hard? I have low blood-sugar, of a sort, I guess. My body burns through it too gogdamn fast. If I don't get enough, I get dizzy and nauseous. It hasn't been bad in a long time, but that's probably because every time Gamzee comes over he stuffs my cabinets full of sugary shit. I've only passed out a few times."

"Karkat, that's terrible! Why didn't you tell me?" John looked hurt, angry, and pitying, all at the same time.

"It never came up." He replied simply.

"Never came… What the hell, Karkat?! Oh man, how could I not have known? I'm a terrible Matesprit/boyfriend!"

"Fuck, John! No! Don't be an idiot! It's not something that you just throw into a conversation! I don't like telling people my weaknesses. Trolls thrive on destroying each other that way! I mean, I know you wouldn't hurt me, but… "

"Karkat… Please tell me?" Kartkat sighed. This was _not_ what he wanted to talk about. Before he could reply, John asked another question. "Does this mean you have like… Troll-Diabetes?"

"Can we just drop this?" Seeing John's expression, he knew it wouldn't be dropped. John usually didn't pry, but this was too important. "Fine, fuckass, you wanna know? I've always been this way. Even when I was a grub. When I went into my cocoon, Crabdad didn't even know if I would ever come out because grubs have problems processing sugars anyways. It's not exactly like hypoglycemia. Just eating sugary shit doesn't fucking solve the hypoglycemia shit. In fact, usually they are recommended to eat more cheese and protein-filled shit like that. Sugar only helps them for a little bit. As for the diabetes question, that's a no. With diabetes, blood sugar is usually too high, though it's not unheard of for someone to have both. I already did a study with trying to eat other things. Cheese and protein-food didn't really help. And the most common treatments didn't help either. I think the only things we have in common are a few of the symptoms… My metabolism is just too fast… But so far the sugar-filled Earth snacks work the best. That's all I'm saying. Happy?"

"Wow, I had no idea! That… that must have been hard…"

"Don't you fucking dare. We're done with this topic." He grabbed a slice of pizza. "See? I'm eating. I'm just fucking great."

"If you're sure…"

"If I wasn't, I would tell you...Don't you have a movie that you wanted to use to rot my superior brain out?"

"Oh yeah! C'mon, 'Con Air' is calling and I need my fill of Karkat snuggles!"

"Fuckass."

The subject was dropped… for that night, anyways…

**Kyaaa! Yeah, my Sollux sucks! I have no idea why I wrote him this way… I know he may be OOC… Sorry!**

**And I kinda rushed the end. I'm not feeling great….**

**I debated on talking about Karkat's mutation for a long time. But I thought that I might as well. I mean, his blood color couldn't (well, more than likely) be the only problem.**

**Please review! I'd like at least 7 total!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Kyaa! Yeah, I know, I said 7 and I would publish. But my life got in the way again.**

**First day at a new school = sucked. As you know, I'm visually impaired. I can't read maps or see room numbers very well. So when I got lost, I didn't see a teacher, so I asked an upperclassman. He gave me wrong directions on purpose. So I was even more lost. And to top it off, I've been really sick in the mornings and right before I go to bed. So on Friday, I was feeling even worse. I went home, took a pill, and laid down. I didn't get up again until 8 this morning. And if you read my other stories, you know I have insomnia, so that's a big deal for me. I really did mean to update though.**

**Sorry for being late!**

**Disclaimer!**

John went to roll over, but found he couldn't. He had a comforting warmth half on top of him and a wall of couch to his right side. He yawned and rubbed his eyes after stretching, only opening them when he realized he couldn't go back to sleep. What he saw made him smile. Karkat was half on top of him, hugging a blanket. His mouth was half open, but this time it wasn't in distress from nightmares. He looked content, and almost happy. John never really noticed how long his eyelashes were. They weren't girly long, but they were a bit close, and they touched his cheek a bit when he closed his eyes. He kissed the top of Karkat's head and started to try and think of a way he could get up without waking him.

After a few minutes, he gave up. He remembered to be really careful because Karkat told him how dangerous it was to wake a troll.

"Karkat? Karkat? You need to wake up."

"Grrr…. mmmmnn…" Karkat made a half assed attempt to growl and rolled over. (Didn't work because they're on the couch)

"Don't you growl at me, mister!" John couldn't help but laugh.

"Mm… tired…." Aw, that was cute. "Fuck off…" That wasn't.

"Karkat, please? I have to pee and I'm kinda hungry. Plus it's like ten-thirty."

"…Fine…" He grumbled and rolled off of John. He still had his eyes clenched shut though. John figured that it was because it was bright with the sun streaming through the window. Karkat rubbed his eyes and opened them slightly, squinting.

"Hehe, you look kinda funny like that—ow! No punching!"

"No being stupid."

John rubbed his arm absently and Karkat stood up and stretched.

"So where do you wanna go for breakfast?"

"…"

"Oh, right. You can't exactly leave like that… hmm… Wait, that means you have to cook! Yay—ouch! Again with the punching…"

"Shut up. What do you want for breakfast?"

"French toast? You said you had a new recipe…"

"Oh yeah. I haven't tried it out yet, but I think it sounds good." He seemed to perk up. John wondered just how much Karkat liked to cook. He seemed to find new recipes a lot. He even taught Gamzee how to make delicious pies—different than the ones Gamzee was used to making.

"Well, if you make it, I'm sure it'll taste great. You are the great chef. It is you." Karkat blushed a little bit and rolled his eyes.

"Don't be stupid. I'm not that great." John was about to protest, but Karkat cut him off. "It's going to take a minute to get the recipe again—I forgot to write it down, but I can get it from a friend. There's a bit of blueberry breakfast cake in the microwave. I made it a few days ago, so it's still good."

"Blueberry breakfast cake?"

"Don't worry, it's not Betty Crocker. I checked." He rolled his eyes at John and pulled out his phone. John walked over to the microwave and opened it, peering into the pan.

It certainly didn't look delicious. The top looked dusty blue and white, and the cake itself was a pasty white color. He pulled it out and set it on the table, still not looking convinced. He walked over to the utensil drawer and got a fork, deciding that he would at least try it. He stuck his fork into the ugly little cake and brought it to his mouth, pausing for a second. It didn't smell bad…

He put the fork in his mouth.

7777

Karkat cursed himself for not writing down the recipe. It had sounded really good! He hoped Damon was awake. He didn't feel like logging onto Trollian, so he settled for just texting him.

**I DON'T REMEMBER THAT FRENCH TOAST RECIPE. I FORGOT TO WRITE OT DOWN. CAN YOU SEND IT AGAIN?**

He waited for a second, and sure enough, he got a reply.

**That is n0t a pr0blem.. I'll send it in a sec.. H0pefully y0u're a better c00k than Jas0n and me.. Neither 0f us c0uld make 0ur Nanna's recipe.. We suck at c00king..**

Damon sent him the recipe and he checked his cabinets, gathering the ingredients. Something suddenly occurred to him though.

**WHO'S JASON?**

Damon was a bit slow at replying, so Karkat started to make the mix and get the bread out.

**I didn't tell y0u? He's my twin br0ther.. We're fraternal th0ugh,, s0 we d0n't l00k alike.. Anyways, I g0tta g0.. Text me later and let me kn0w h0w the French t0ast turns 0ut! 0h and are we still 0n for Tuesday?**

Karkat chuckled. So neither John nor Damon could cook.

**WILL DO. YES, WE ARE STILL ON. TALK TO YOU LATER I GUESS. **

He put his phone down on the table and began finishing up making the French toast. But something was nagging at him. John was being quiet. Too quiet…

"John?"

No answer.

He sat the stuff down and went to find him. He walked into the dining area that was right next to the kitchen and found John frozen with the fork in his mouth.

"John? John, what the hell is wrong with you, you idiot? If it's bad, spit it out! I can throw it away!" He reached for the pan, but John's hand all of a sudden shot out and grabbed his wrist, making him yelp in surprise.

"NO!"

"Wha—"

"This stuff is amazing!" John's eyes were wide. He'd never tasted anything so good! It was sweet without being too sweet, and somehow Karkat had managed to put real blueberries in it that kept their flavor. On the top was a bit of powdered sugar and something like blueberry flavored crumbles. It was amazing.

"What the fuck are you talking about? This was my first try making that. It's probably shit! I gave half of it to my neighbors. I didn't think it looked very good…"

"It doesn't _look_ good, but this is… You need to make this for the rest of forever!"

"You are so fucking weird. Anyways, the French toast is done. You can take home some of the breakfast cake as well, if you want." John nodded vigorously. "Now go eat that damn French toast before it gets cold."

John looked reluctant to leave the cake, but Karkat shooed him into the kitchen to grab his plate. John liked breakfast food, but it wasn't his favorite. The French toast sure smelled good though. He grabbed both plates and carried them to the dining area where Karkat was putting some of the Blueberry Heaven (John calls it that now) into a plastic container.

"Oh, I forgot the syrup. Here, I'll go—"

"No, I'll get it. I want a glass of milk too. You want something to drink?"

"Milk is fine." He almost said orange juice, but then remembered that he was about to have syrup. Yuck.

Karkat returned a minute later with the syrup in one hand and two glasses in the other.

"Here, let me take that before you drop one!"

He took the one that Karkat had been pinning to his chest with his forearm and sat down again. Karkat sat across from him. Karkat tried it first, chewing a bit slow.

"Hm… It's alright. I'll do better next time though." John rolled his eyes at Karkat's statement. He always said that. He never believes anyone when they try to praise him. John poured some syrup on his plate and took a bite. Followed by several more because oh my god is that vanilla and cinnamon? "Like it?"

"Mmhm, ith great!"

"Don't talk with your mouth full, stupid." John swallowed and grinned.

"I said it's great! Where'd you get the recipe?"

"A friend of mine said it was his grandmother's, and that he couldn't make it right. He said his brother tried too, and also failed. He was hoping I could."

"I need to personally thank him then! Wait, I didn't know you had any other human friends!"

"I may be an insufferable asshole, but apparently some people find that appealing. Gog knows why."

"Who are they? Can I meet them?"

"Well, I wouldn't say we're friends. I mean, I can tolerate them and they tolerate me. There are a few in this building, actually. The neighbors I mentioned earlier are some. They're sisters. The oldest one, Sara, just finished college and works at a new law firm, and the younger one, Bonnie, aren't so bad. The youngest one, Terrie is kind of annoying, but she's only two. They like the same movies I do, and sometimes Bonnie asks for help with her Biology homework. Occasionally she comes over simply because she's bored and Sara's not home. You already know another one—why are you laughing?"

"Pfft, hahaha, I told you those movies were girly!"

"Fuck off!"

"N-no, I'm sorry!" He kept giggling though, making Karkat irritated. He sobered up quickly. "Who was the one I know?"

"Damon."

"Damon? I don't know any… wait, the guy from the club? What the hell, Karkat!?"

"What?"

"You can't be friends with _him_!"

"_Can't?"_

"Wait, I didn't mean it like that! I'm not trying to tell you what to do! I just… I thought he was… y'know…"

"No, I don't know. Just spit it out!"

"I thought he really liked you! I mean, remember? You guys were dancing and you seemed to click really well. I thought I was going to lose you to him…" John looked down, embarrassed.

"John, stop being stupid! We already fucking went over this. I'm with _you. _He knows that. I already asked him about it, too. He said he was okay with it as long as I was happy and that he'd still like to be friends or some shit. So we are. There is no point in being jealous or mad. Do you really think that little of me?"

"What? No! I mean, I know you'd never… I just don't trust him for some reason. I just think he feels like he's… _off._ I don't know… But if you're sure…"

"I am. And I can take care of my fucking self, thank you very fucking much!"

"Heh, I know you can!"

"So you aren't mad?"

"...Well, no. I was just worried. I still don't really like him, but if you do, then I'm not gonna try and stop you. I think it's good that you have friends. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to insinuate that you couldn't—"

"It's fine. You don't have to apologize every fucking time!"

"Sorry—er, sorry—wait, I uh—"

"Egbert, just shut up for the love of fuck." But Karkat's lips slightly turned up, almost forming a sort of smile. John smiled too, relived that the fight was over. They fought all the time, but something like this made him really uncomfortable.

"I'm so lucky," He said, grinning as he got up with his plate to go put it in the sink.

"What the fuck brought that up?" John turned around so suddenly that Karkat almost walked into him. John kissed his cheek and smiled.

"Because my boyfriend/Matesprite is the best cook ever. And because you're not mad at me!—Oh wait, that reminds me! I need to talk to you."

Karkat felt his stomach sink a bit. The last part sounded serious. He turned away from the sink and back towards John.

"Oh, don't worry! It's not bad! I was just going to tell you why I left the other day. Dave and I had plans, so I went to his place for a bit. And then I realized that I hadn't even told him yet! He's my best friend and I haven't told him that we're officially together yet! I was going to wait and see if it was okay with you if I told everyone. But… I kind of told him anyways…."

"If you told Strider, I'm sure everyone else knows already." He hadn't meant to growl that, but he did a little. John frowned. "I don't care if you want to tell everyone. We can send out a message if you want. I can't exactly fucking leave the house like this."

"Okay!"

**Kyaa! Okay, the blueberry breakfast cake was based on real life. This morning, my mom made one, and it looked terrible, but it was HEAVEN! **

**Yeah, that was almost pointless…. But I realized I never said if they actually announced it to anyone. I mean, Dave, Terezi, Sollux, Nepeta, and Vriska were there.**

**Oh wait, I never said how Vriska helped…. Well, shit…**

**I'll tell you eventually!**

**Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys… Yeah, I've been really depressed lately. A few friends are in the hospital, and I'm really sick right now. I hate my school, a lot.**

**Sorry if you follow my other series. It's too serious for me right now, and I need this…**

**So…**

**This will probably suck. If so, let me know. I will redo it**

**Disclaimer!**

_**-**_**ectoBiologist **_posted a memo on board: _**THIS IS STUPID—**

**EB: I have an announcement!**

**CG: …**

**EB: I mean WE (karkat and me) have an announcement!**

_**-**_**turntechGodhead **_responded to Memo: _**THIS IS STUPID**_- _

**TG: whoa Egbert started a memo?**

**EB: yep! i finally got to start one! :B**

**EB: but Karkat named it!**

**TG: Of course he did**

**EB: whats that supposed to mean?**

**TG: nothing**

**TG: now are you going to tell us whats got you so excited?**

**EB: yep!**

**-terminallyCapricious **_responded to Memo: _**THIS IS STUPID—**

**TC: i ThInK I MoThErFuCkIn' KnOw :o)**

**CG: YES. YOU DO. NOW SHUT UP AND LET JOHN TELL IT BEFORE HE EXPLODES**

**TG: oh I know what this is now**

**-arsenicCatnip **_responded to the Memo: _**THIS IS STUPID—**

**AC: :33 *ac cocks her head to the side* what is it, Karkitty?**

**EB: hey! i am telling the thing!**

**TG: get on with it then**

**EB: Okay! **

**EB: you asked for it!**

**EB: Drum roll, please!**

**CG: JUST FUCKING TELL THEM**

**EB: aw**

**EB: fine.**

**EB: Okay, so you know how all that stuff happened at the club?**

**EB: Well, long story short…**

**EB: Karkat and I are together!**

**EB: like boyfriends! Er, Matesprits!**

**TG: and?**

**AC: :33 *ac rolls her eyes* I know!**

**TC: I aLrEaDy aLl Up aNd KnEw ThAt! HoNk!**

**-gardenGnostic and twinArmegeddons **_responded to the memo: _**THIS IS STUPID—**

**GG: So what's the important announcement?**

**TA: And make iit quiick. ii 2till have two work on your band KK**

**EB: wait, you guys already knew? What?**

**EB: Karkat you said you would let me tell them!**

**CG: I ONLY TOLD GAMZEE**

**EB: then how do the rest of you know?**

**GG: John**

**GG: come on!**

**GG: it was so obvious!**

**EB: what? how? we only JUST got together a few days ago!**

**TA: iif that2 all you had two say, ii'm leaviing. **

**TG: yeah it was obvious you wanted that**

**EB: dave! You don't count! I already told you!**

**TG: Ouch man**

**TG: that hurts**

**TG: just sayin that even if you hadn't told me id still know**

**TG: It was obvious that you wanted that Vantas ass**

**EB: DAVE!**

**TG: what**

**EB: why would you say that?**

**TG: what, you want me to lie?**

**TG: lying isn't cool man**

**TG: shame**

**EB: you know what I mean! You didn't have to say it like *that***

**TG: well you did**

**-grimAuxiliatrix **_responded to the Memo: _**THIS IS STUPID—**

**GA: I Have To Agree**

**GA: It Was Rather Obvious**

**CG: NOT YOU TOO**

**EB: even Kanaya?!**

**GA: As Strider Put It, It Was Obvious To Me That John Wanted That 'Vantas Ass'**

**GA: And Karkat Wanted You Too**

**GA: I Don't Know How You Two Didn't See It Before**

**EB: that just doesn't sound right coming from you**

**CG: IT REALLY DOESN'T**

**GA: I Apologize**

**CG: WELL NOW THAT THIS IS AWKWARD**

**EB: im gonna close this, but I'll leave it up so everyone can see when they come online**

**TG: Vantas you need to make an honest derp out of my Egbert before things get too serious**

**CG: FUCK OFF, STRIDER**

**EB: dave!**

**TG: what?**

**-ectoBiologist**_ closed Memo on Board: _**THIS IS STUPID-**

John fell off the couch laughing, and Karkat just stared at the screen.

"O-oh man, I can't believe Kanaya said that! Hahaha!"

"I can't believe it either. And since you left the comment space open, no doubt everyone else will say something too."

"Haha, yeah. But seriously, did you tell anyone besides Gamzee?"

"No. Well, Sollux knew, but I didn't have to actually say it."

"Huh… I bet Nepeta's disappointed…"

Karkat didn't reply. He probably should have asked Sollux how the SX-Band was going… _And if he knew any reason for your scars to hurt. But he's not a doctor… Fuck, I'm going to have to get checked out, aren't I? Well, I haven't hurt today, so maybe I can put it off. Yeah…_

"—Karkat?"

"Fuck, what did you say?"

"Are you okay? You spaced out for a second."

"I'm fine." He left the dishes in the drying rack and went upstairs to change. As he took off his shirt, he jumped at an unwelcome intrusion.

"Whoa!"

"What the fuck are you doing in here? I'm changing!" John ignored him and pointed to the scar that went from Karkat's chest to his stomach. Jack's scar.

"Why is that so pink? I mean, last time I saw it, it looked more white… Does it hurt?"

"No," Technically it wasn't a lie. It didn't hurt at that moment. "It's just pink. I'm fine."

"If you're sure…" John wasn't convinced.

"Don't you have someone else to bother?"

"Nope. Lucky you!"

"…Yeah, lucky me."

"Oh! I forgot!"

"Forgot what?" He asked, annoyed.

"I didn't get a chance to ask you how much you love 'Con Air' because I fell asleep right after the credits…"

"…"

"Well?"

"It…. Wasn't as terrible as it could have been…"

John beamed at him and did a little dance.

"I knew it~!" He sang happily. "You love 'Con Air,' you love 'Con Air!'"

"No I don't! It's merely not the worst human cinema I've ever seen."

"You loooove it!"

"No, no I don't." John rolled his eyes and walked over to Karkat. He opened the dresser and began rummaging through it. "What the hell are you doing? Don't touch my shit!"

"Jeez Karkat, don't you have anything that's not black or grey?" He ignored Karkat's protests and kept going through the drawer.

"Okay, just fucking ignore everything I'm saying and keep destroying the order of my clothes. I mean, it's not like I fucking care or anything!"

"Okay."

"I hate you."

"No you don't!" he beamed at Karkat, making the troll roll his eyes. When John turned his attention back to the drawer he was rummaging in, he yanked something out. "Aha! I knew you had to have _some_ color!"

"I'm not wearing that."

"But Karkat—"

"No."

John held the white T-shirt to his chest, and patted it as if to comfort it.

"I'm sorry, shirt. Karkat hates you. But it's okay. I love you. He just doesn't understand and doesn't know how to love you. Shh, it's okay…"

"You are so fucking weird!"

"You're hurting his feelings."

"Did you even see what was on the front of that?"

John had barely looked. He just saw a spash of color and grabbed it. He held the shirt out and spread it so he could see the design. It was a rainbow—obviously painted on. The rainbow was dripping colors and some ran together. Above it, still in rainbow color order, was the word 'Miracles.'

"Oh…"

"Gamzee made it for me."

"Why don't you wear it?"

"Number one, because the paint looks like blood, and number two, because I look terrible in white. I look terrible all the time anyways, but—"

"Stop that! What did I say about putting yourself down?"

"Still not wearing that." John grinned at him.

"Yes you are…" He lunged, and Karkat ducked out of the way, barely escaping. He let a hiss escape.

"Egbert, you had better fucking stop that right now."

"No! I wanna see you wear this!"

"Too fucking bad."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pleeeaaaase?"

"No."

"What if… I kiss you?"

"No."

"What if I kiss you twice?"

"No."

"What if I kiss you lots and lots?"

"N—pfth!" John lunged for him again and this time he managed to get the shirt over his head a little bit. Karkat struggled, but he didn't want to rip the shirt. Gamzee would be crushed. He snarled and twisted, but John held on. "FINE!"

"Yay!" He didn't let go, but Karkat stopped struggling. He pulled his head the rest of the way through and pulled his arms through the arm holes. John grinned at him and leaned in to kiss him. Karkat blocked him with one hand.

"No."

"Why not?"

"You pissed me off."

"But… But…"

"No 'but's. No kissing either." John pouted, and Karkat smirked.

"For how long?"

"I don't fucking know. Whenever I feel like it, I guess." He shrugged. "Oh, and since we fell asleep before watching 'When in Rome' we're watching that now."

"Oh yeah…"

"Well, come on!" Karkat walked into the living room and sat on the couch. He had one of those DVD players that held 5 discs, so when you finished one, you just had to press 'next' to see the next DVD. John sat beside him and they squirmed and moved around until they were comfortable. This meant that Karkat was leaning against John, and John had one arm around him. They leaned against the back of the couch, relaxing.

John had to admit that he actually liked this movie. It wasn't as good as an action movie, but it was pretty funny. They were only halfway through the movie when he realized something: Karkat was asleep. Now, it wouldn't be that surprising with anyone else, because people fall asleep to movies all the time. But not Karkat. He never does, especially rom-coms. But he was dead-asleep.

"Karkat? Karkat, come on! You're the one who wanted to watch this stupid thing!"

"…" He didn't even fidget.

"Karkat! Wake up!"

"…"

"KARKAT!"

He wouldn't wake up.

**Kya! Yep. Cliffy! Sorry guys. I'm so tired and sick and crap. I forgot where this was originally heading, so I added a part. Don't worry, I know the general direction of the fic.**

**Probably.**

**That was mostly memo... wow, I suck**

**Next chapter: Will he wake up? What's wrong with him?**

**Please Review! (I didn't get many last time, and that made me feel like this sucked... I'd like at least 17 in all. That's not bad. It's only 4 more!)**


	5. Chapter 5

**~Kyaa!~ Hehe, thanks for the reviews! I'm sorry! I always hurt Karkat… But I love him!**

**Yeah, um, I… As I said, I am depressed right now. I am trying to update and stuff, but… yeah.**

**I have also been really sick lately. That's why no update…**

**Don't worry! No Hiatus or anything!**

**Sorry for typos... I'm half-asleep**

**Disclaimer!**

"_Poor peasant-blood. All alone, aren't you?" _

"_Who the fuck are you? Show yourself you fucking coward!"_

"_But Karkitty, you wouldn't save me…."_

_Karkat froze at the sound of the voice. He couldn't remember anything before this. He had been… something that had to do with John… But what? Were they messaging each other? He wondered how far along the derp had gotten in the Game while he was unconscious… He had woken up in some sort of ruins. It looked like a house once stood alone in the field. It was too dark to see anything besides that though. The sky was pure black… in fact, almost everything was pitch-black. It seemed like a dim light was fixed on him, almost like a spotlight. He was dizzy… so dizzy… Something hurt… but what was it? He lifted his shirt and saw a long scar that went from his stomach to his chest. When had that happened?_

_He'd heard a deep rumbling voice laughing. Mocking him. He snarled and reached for his sickles, but they weren't there. He had nothing to fight with. He dropped into a crouch and bared his teeth. He could fight like this if he had to! But that voice… The second time…_

_It sounded like a little girl._

"_Nepeta? Nepeta, where the fuck are you? This isn't funny!"_

"_I don't think it's funny… I thought you were my furriend…. It's so cold, Karkitty! It hurts! Why won't you save me?"_

"_What hurts? Where the fuck are you?!"_

"_Why are you letting me die? I loved you!" Love? What's…_

"_Nepeta!"_

_He spun around, searching desperately. He sank to his knees and began sifting through the rubble, searching for a body. He screamed her name and dug until his hands bled. He didn't care if she saw his blood now. All that mattered was saving her and anyone else that could be trapped. He didn't care what would come after._

"_Nepeta, tell me where the fuck you are!"_

"_It's too late Karkitty…"_

_He froze. No. It couldn't be. He spun around, still on his knees. There, right in front of him, was Nepeta. Or what was left of her._

_The figure before him was shorter than him, but only by a little. He was about to scream at her for pulling such a prank, but then he noticed something…. She wasn't touching the ground. She floated just a few inches off the ground, tail trailing behind her. Her hat was slightly lopsided and ripped, and her skin was very pale grey—almost __**glowing.**__ He was afraid to look at her eyes, but he forced himself to look anyways. They were opened in a blank white stare. There was no trace of yellow or green. Just pure white. His jaw dropped in horror and he scrambled to his feet. _

_As he watched her in complete horror, she tilted her head at him as if confused. He couldn't form any word. He couldn't even scream. Suddenly, she opened her mouth and began to wail. Bright green blood had started to drip from her face. It came out of her hairline, her mouth, her nose, and some from her eyes._

"_It huuuuurrrts! Make it stop! Why won't you help me?!"_

"_What do I do?! Please—just fucking tell me!"_

_He reached for her, and she reached for him, but suddenly she was yanked backwards. She screamed and blood spewed from her mouth and onto his shirt. There was something—black tentacles wrapping around her legs. They seemed to be made of the black fog that surrounded them. He dove forward and grabbed her hand._

_He tried to pull her back, but he couldn't! It was too strong! He snarled at the blackness._

"_GIVE HER BACK!"_

_Suddenly, he felt something yank on his ankle. It jerked him back with such a force that Nepeta's hand slipped from his._

"_NOOOOO!"_

"_Ahhh!" She shrieked and he snarled at the tentacle that had him by the foot. He slashed at it, but to no avail. Then he felt another wrap around one wrist, then the other. They pinned him down, but made no attempt to drag him into the inky blackness._

"_LET ME GO!"_

_He struggled and struggled, but he couldn't break free. He heard something that sounded like screaming and stopped struggling for a second. He looked up to see a scene folding out in front of him—like a movie. _

_Sollux was sitting alone, his head in his hands. But something wasn't right. He was crying—no, sobbing—and shit, were those crackles od energy Karkat saw? As he looked closer, he saw that Sollux was spattered in not only his yellow blood, but maroon blood as well._

"_Sollux!"_

_Sollux didn't even look up. It was like he couldn't hear him._

"_SOLLUX, YOU ASSHOLE! SAY SOMETHING!"_

_No answer._

"_PLEASE! JUST SAY SOMETHING! Anything! Please…."_

_Suddenly, Sollux looked up. His eyes glowed from behind his cracked frames._

"_Thith ith all your fault!"_

"_Sollux—"_

"_I'll kill you! You didn't do anything to stop it! You didn't thave her!"_

"_I don—"_

"_You were thuppothed to be the leader!"_

"_I—"_

"_No!" Sullux snarled, standing up. He leaned close to Karkat. Yellow and dark red blood smeared hands gripped his shirt for a second before letting go. "You didn't do anything. You failed. We're all dead now…"_

"_No!"_

_But the picture was gone. He was alone again._

"_Sniffle…"_

_Or maybe not._

"_Hello?"_

"_Karbro? Is that you?"_

"_Gamzee! Fuck! Where are you!?"_

"_I'm right here, bestfriend…"_

_Karkat jerked and tried to turn, but he couldn't. The tentacles seemed to know what he wanted though, and the turned him. Gamzee was huddled on the floor, covered in blood. Indigo, jade, yellow, brownish, dark red, blue… _

_He had his head in his hands, and he was sitting in a puddle of brownish blood. Karkat noticed a figure lying motionless beside him. He'd know those horns anywhere…_

"_When Tavbro wakes up, you and me, and him can have a pie together, right? And we can play one of his games, even though you don't like them very much…. I wanna see his motherfucking smile. Why won't he wake up yet? Why won't he smile?"_

"_G-Gamzee…."_

_Gamzee wasn't huddled anymore. He stretched a little and stroked Tavros' hair._

"_Wake up, bro. I got some Miracles to show you… Why won't you wake up?"_

"_G-Gamzee…. Stop… Y-you need to just-fucking stop!"_

_Gamzee looked at him, but this time it wasn't lost and scared. It was angry._

"_YOU MOTHERFUCKING DID THIS!"_

"_W-what? No! I—"_

"_YOU COULD HAVE STOPPED ME! WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP ME?" Gamzee snarled at him. Indigo blood dripped from his face and onto Karkat._

"_Gamzee, I—"_

_The scene was gone. He felt something warm on his face and realized it was a tear. He was crying. _

"_Karkles!"_

"_KK!"_

"_Low-blood."_

"_Karkitty!"_

"_Kaaaaaaaarkles!"_

"_Best friend!"_

"_Karkat!"_

"_Kar!"_

"_Vantas."_

_He spun around. Everyone was there. All of them were fatally wounded with white eyes. Just like Nepeta. Their blood dripped onto the ruins and seemed to line up in order from highest to lowest. They only smeared together slightly. As he looked around in horror, he noticed something else. They weren't alone._

_The humans were there._

_John, Jade, Dave, and Rose were each there. They were covered in blood—their human blood—and their clothes were tattered. John's glasses were broken, and Dave didn't have his shades._

"_Why did you let us die, Karkat? I wanted to be friends…"_

"_Nice going, Vantas…"_

"_Why, Karkat?"_

"_**AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"**_

_Karkat screamed and thrashed._

"_**SHUT UP! JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP!"**_

_Suddenly, it was dead silent._

_He opened his eyes fearfully, and looked around. Nothing. No light anymore either. It was pith-black, and he couldn't see. He felt himself being released from the tentacles and set on the ground. He hoped that whoever was there would just kill him already._

"_So you wish to die?"_

_His head snapped up. The voice sounded so… young. He looked around frantically, until his eyes stopped on something strange. It was an eyeball—or something like it. A floating eyeball. Well, at least it looked like it was floating. It was too dark to tell, and it seemed to glow anyways. Why not say it floated?_

_The iris was a very light green, and the eyeball seemed annoyed. It didn't blink or move focus. If he could see better, he'd probably see a furrowed brow._

"_DO YOU WISH TO DIE OR NOT?"_

"_I…"_

"_Do you want to live?" This time, it was a different voice. This one was still young, but it was gentler. "You can still change all of this—"_

"_He shouldn't get the choice!" Green snarled._

"_That is not for you to decide."_

_He spun around, and saw another eyeball. This one had a very light blue iris. The blue one seemed like it was trying to be reasonable, and the green one just seemed aggravated._

"_Everyone is dead. I don't… I don't fucking care anymore!" Karkat croaked finally._

"_But you're still here."_

"_I didn't choose this!"_

"_Nobody ever does, Karkat."_

"_Are you going to kill me?" He whispered._

_This time, Green answered._

"_And let you off so easily? No. You're going to have to figure this all out for yourself. If you're strong enough… Well, perhaps we should kill him… It would make things so much easier on us…"_

"_No," Blue growled back. "He has the choice.—"_

"_WE DIDN'T! Why should he?"_

"_You know why we didn't… Let him figure things out." Why did Blue sound so familiar?_

"_Who are you? Figure WHAT out?"_

"_I am not allowed to tell you yet. I'm sorry, Karkat. But you should know that—"_

"_We need to send him back now."_

"_Oh, you're right. We've kept him too long…"_

"_W-what? Send me where? Fucking answer me!"_

_The voices didn't say anything, and the eyes closed, sending him back into the darkness. His heart was pounding, and he couldn't breathe. He felt a drop hit his face. And another. And another… he looked up to see blood-smeared rainbows dripping onto him. He screamed as the drops of blood began to flow heavier and tried to cover his face. _

_Everyone was dead._

_He had failed._

_7777_

Karkat lunged forward, not even fully awake yet. He felt strong arms trying to restrain him. He immediately fought.

"LET ME GO!"

"Whoa, motherfucking bestfriend!"

He snarled, not listening. His eyes were still clenched closed.

"K-Karkat!" _What… John?_

His eyes snapped open and he was instantly forced to squint because of the light. When he could focus better, he looked around warily. The walls of the small room he was in were red-orange… _Where am I? Wait… This is my hive—er, apartment… That's right… And John…_

"What… What the fuck happened?"

"Oh Karkat!" John instantly tackle-hugged him. The human was a mess. He had tears streaming down his face and he was sweating badly. John hugged him tight, and ricked back and forth a little.

"John, what the fuck are you doing? Didn't I tell you not to suddenly—"

"Shut up! I'm allowed to today! I thought you were dying or something!" John cried, hugging tighter. Suddenly, he felt a larger pair of arms wrap around him too—and John, since John was so close.

Karkat looked up to see Gamzee—but this time he wasn't screaming or covered in blood. Karkat's heart thrummed in his chest when he saw unshed tears in Gamzee's eyes.

"Karbro, you motherfuckin' scared me, man. I was just coming up to see my palebro, and I heard this motherfucker scream. I dropped all the shit I was carrying and ran as fast as my legs would carry me. And you… you wouldn't motherfucking move… you wouldn't even answer me… I thought I lost my best bro forever…"

Gamzee trailed off. Karkat's heart clenched. He was going to reply, but he realized that John was sobbing something.

"—a-and I called Kanya and Rose—"

**CRASH!**

They all turned to see who kicked in the door. Kanaya stood, elegant as always, but with a look of fear on her face. She quickly scanned the room and rushed over to Karkat. Rose was a second behind her, clutching a medium-sized black bag.

"Karkat? Are you alright? John called us, and he was crying. He said you wouldn't wake up…" Kanaya trailed off as John glared at her. She made it seem like she had been expecting a prank when she walked in! She looked at him apologetically.

"I have no fucking clue what happened… One second I was watching a movie with John, and the next, I wake up to two sobbing idiots."

"I see… Gamzee, I need you to let him go so I can examine him. You too, John." Gamzee looked at her suspiciously, and slowly let go. He didn't take his eyes off her though. John just hugged him tighter. Rose calmly walked up to them and patted John's back.

"John, you have to let go. Kanaya needs to examine him—and you're probably making it hard for him to breathe. You don't want something like that to happen again, do you?"

John immediately stepped back. He didn't let go completely, but he figured that holding Karkat's hand wasn't being in the way.

"You can stop crying, idiot, I'm fine." But his voice sounded a bit raspy, even to him.

Since there were trolls on Earth, they needed someone who knew troll biology well enough to start researching medicine for them. Kanaya volunteered. She also learned a bit of human first aid from Rose. Her eyes lost the frantic look they had been holding when she had first busted in the door, but they were still full of concern.

"Now, tell me what happened." Kanaya said, leaning close to inspect Karkat's eyes. His pupils looked fine…

"I don't even have a fucking clue. John?" John had composed himself, and was no longer crying.

"We were just watching a movie, and I said something to him. He didn't respond, and I thought that was kind of weird because he usually yells at me if I try and talk to him during one of his movies. But then… He just… I don't know. He wouldn't wake up! I was so scared! I mean, I yelled at him, and I shook him, and he didn't even make a noise! He wasn't moving! And I was trying to find a pulse, and I had to remember that for trolls you have to feel closer to the elbow… He barely had one. I screamed at him again, and Gamzee came—through the window, I guess—"

"Fuck, did you break it again?!"

"—and he started freaking out and screaming at me, and I called you, and you took so long to get here… Why did you take so long?" Kanaya frowned.

"That is my fault. I am sorry. I thought that it might be a prank… When I got here and heard you yelling, I realized that I was wrong."

"I wouldn't pull a prank like that!"

"John, calm down." His eyes shifted to Rose and he nodded.

"Sorry, Kanaya."

"It's quite alright, John. Under the circumstances, I understand." She turned to Karkat. "Has anything happened like this before?"

"I don't thin—"

"Yesterday morning." Gamzee said seriously. He wasn't smiling at all. He was watching Kanaya and Karkat intensely.

"Oh yeah. Fuck I forgot—"

"He passed out on the fucking floor. I was in the neighborhood, and decided to drop in on my moirail, but when I got here, he was on the floor, screaming and shit. His scars were all angry-looking too. Motherfucker almost passed out." Gamzee glanced at Karkat, daring him to say otherwise. Gamzee was a bit overprotective sometimes…

"Karkat! Why didn't you say anything? We should have gotten you checked out sooner!" John cried. Karkat sighed.

"I was going to call Kanaya!"

"You said you'd motherfucking do it yesterday." Gamzee growled. Karkat just sighed again. He was getting nowhere.

Kanaya had him take off his shirt, and she examined his scars. They were just a faint pink color. They didn't really ache anymore, but she insisted on checking them anyways. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Kanaya stepped back.

"I am not sure what happened to him, honestly." She said with her brow furrowed. John's heart plummeted. "I am not sure if it has to do with his mutation, or if it is an illness. If it is, I have never seen it. He doesn't have a fever or feel sick…"

"So what do we do?"

"I have one suggestion."

"Well? What is it?"

"Karkat is not going to like this, but…"

**Kyaaa! Hehe, I'm baaack! Yeah, that was kinda long. Sorry for the scare!**

**Please Review! I'd like at least 22 in all!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Kya… Um, okay… Here's the deal… I got a really mean review on one of my other stories, and I can take a flame or two, I really can. But this was just kind of cruel and unneeded. If they didn't like my stories, they could have said so nicely and given me a list of things they think I should improve on. But no, they did not. They insulted me. This does not help with my depression—not being a drama queen. I'm being serious. I had a really bad week, and I was sick. And to get that message just… It almost made me want to stop.**

**But then I realized… I don't give a fuck. I really don't. They don't like my stories, don't read them. I write for fun, and most people either enjoy my stories, and if they don't, they can at least be fucking polite.**

**Sorry to be so blunt…**

**So I am taking a break from my other series… just for a week or so…**

**Disclaimer!**

"You can stop growling at me, Karkat. It's not working. I'm staying right here."

"Grrr…."

"I mean it. I'm not leaving."

"John, get the fuck out!"

"No."

"NOW!" Karkat snarled at him from his spot in the kitchen. John stood his ground, leaning against the door frame. Usually, he wouldn't push it, but Kanaya said that someone needed to watch Karkat at all times to make sure he didn't pass out—or worse. John tried not to think about the second…

"I'm sorry, Karkat, but I am not leaving you anytime soon. Even if Kanaya hadn't said that you had to have someone stay with you, after what happened today, I don't think I could just leave. I'm worried about you…"

"That's stupid. I can take care of myself!"

"It's not stupid. You're my Matesprit."

"Don't pull that shit!"

"It's true."

"Ugh! Fuck this! Kanaya doesn't know what she's talking about!"

"If you want me to leave, I'm calling Gamzee to take over. It was a pain in the ass to make him leave earlier. If he comes back, I doubt he ever will."

"Fuck!"

Karkat threw his hands up dramatically and huffed in annoyance. He hated having John watch him like this. He wanted John to be here because he _wanted to_ not because he _had to_. John didn't like it that Karkat was so adamant on getting him to leave.

"Do you really not want me here?"

"It's not that. Fuck, I just don't think you should _have_ to be here!"

"Karkat, it's not like that! I mean, yeah, I _am_ worried about you, but I came over yesterday to hang out with you. And I still want to—I mean, if you do?"

"Alright, I guess… What do you want to do? I still can't leave because I don't have my SX-Band… Want to watch a movie? We never finished '_When in Rome'_ from earlier."

"I… Don't really want to watch a movie right now." Not after what happened when they tried to watch it earlier. John knew it was stupid to associate the movie itself with Karkat's 'episode' but he couldn't help it. "Wanna play a videogame?"

"Only if it's violent."

"You have 'Left 4 Dead 2,' right?"

7777

They played 'Left 4 Dead 2' for about an hour and a half, but after John startled the Witch on purpose for the fourth time, Karkat turned it off and they started 'Mario Kart' on the Wii.

"Hehe, why are you always Bowser or Boo?"

"Because Bowser is clearly the biggest and most powerful character—and King Boo kicks ass too. Why are you always Luigi or Yoshi?"

"Hmm… I dunno. I just like them, I guess. Dave usually chooses Peach or Baby Peach for 'ironic' purposes, but sometimes he picks someone else. Actually, I'm kind of hungry… Wanna order something?"

"You're only saying that because you're losing!"

"No I'm not—blue shell! Yes!"

"Fuck! Damn it, Egbert, you let Donkey Kong pass me!"

"Yeah! I'm catching up! But seriously, I am hungry—no! Dang it, Toad!"

"I fucking hate this map. Why did you pick Coconut Mall?"

"I don't know!"

"Hah! Take that!"

"Okay, okay! You won! _Now_ can we order something to eat?"

Karkat sat down the Wii-mote and thought for a second. He didn't feel like having pizza, and he didn't want to cook…

"Chinese?"

"Yeah! That sounds good! But wait, the only place nearby is Panda Express, and they don't deliver… Well, I guess I can go pick it up—but wait, I can't leave you alone. What about—"

"Shut up. I _know_ that the only place close is Panda. I can call Sara—er, she's probably at work… I can ask Bonnie to get us some food. She probably won't mind."

"Bonnie?"

"Remember? Jeez, Egbert. I told you only fucking yesterday. I didn't know that having a short-term memory was part of your stupidity."

"…"

"My neighbor."

"Oh yeah! But doesn't she have to babysit her little sister—Terrie?"

"She's a toddler, not a fucking disease. It is okay to take her out into the world—two blocks away."

"I didn't mean it like that!" Karkat didn't seem to acknowledge John's words. He was looking at his phone with a furrowed brow. "What's wrong?"

"I forgot that I emptied my inbox. I only had their number in that because I kept on forgetting to enter the damn thing in my contacts. Fuck, looks like we're gonna have to meet face to face. At least it's only next door."

"Um, you can't go out like that. That was the whole problem! And, uh, I don't think that they would take kindly to me—a stranger—showing up unannounced and—wait, what are you doing?"

Karkat had set his phone on the table and walked over to the wall. He glanced back at John and with an annoyed sigh, explained himself.

"I can't go out in the hall like this, idiot. So what do you think I'm doing?" He didn't give John a chance to answer before he raised a fist and knocked loudly on the wall a few times. _**Knock knock knock!**_ "BONNIE!"

"Wait, if she comes over now, she'll see you!"

"She's seen me like this before."

"_What_?"

"Yeah… I forgot to turn the band on a few times, and she saw me. She never really asked any questions though. Just fucking went with it. Weird, huh?"

"… I honestly don't know what to say. Either she's _really_ smart, or _really _dumb…"

"Well, either way, that's good for me."

"Uh, I guess… But if she doesn't wonder about _you, _I can't help but think she could get into trouble somewhere else…"

"She's not _that_ stupid. She'd come to me if she ever needed help."

"But—"

**Knock knock knock!**

"Mr. Kat? Did you want something? Hello?"

"I'm coming, I'm coming! You can stop banging on the fucking door already!"

Karkat walked to the front door and opened it in one easy movement. John tensed, ready to grab Karkat back if needed. He took a step closer to peer at the girl—Bonnie.

Bonnie was short and young-looking. _Probably first or second year in highschool… _John guessed. She was pale and had a few freckles on her cheeks, but she was pretty. She had long red hair that went past her shoulders and curled, framing her face nicely. Her eyes were a light green color, not as bright as Jade's, but still pretty. She seemed unfazed by Karkat's appearance.

"Did you want something, Mr. Kat?"

"Yeah. Sorry to bother you, but I was going to ask you if you could do me a favor—it wont take long…"

"Sure! What is it?" She sounded pretty cheerful.

"I… can't exactly go parading around the fucking streets like… _this…" _He motioned to himself. "And John and I are—"

"Sure, I'll get you some food."

"I didn't even finish my senten—"

"Who's John?" Karkat seemed a bit annoyed by her interrupting him, but didn't say anything. He opened the door a bit wider and gestured to John. He smiled and waved, and she smiled in return. She nodded to Karkat. "Okay. So, you want Panda Express, IHOP, Subway, or…?"

"Panda. Here, let me get some money—"

"No, I got it! You bought me dinner the other day, Mr. Kat!"

"I was helping you with your homework and I was hungry anyways. It wasn't a favor—"

"Even so, it'd be nice if you let me cover it! You already refuse when Sara offers to pay you for helping me."

"I don't need any money—"

"Please?" She pouted. Karkat sighed in annoyance.

"Fine… But then you have to let me check your homework tomorrow." She laughed and nodded.

"Okay! Oh, and do you want the usual, Mr. Kat?" Karkat nodded. She turned to John. "And what would you like, Mr…?"

"Um, you can call me John! And I'd like… Orange Chicken and Chow-Mein, please."

"No problem! But, I need you to do something for me after all, Mr. Kat…"

"What is it?"

"Terrie is supposed to be napping, and I can't leave her alone… Could you watch her? I'll only be gone for like twenty minutes!"

"…" Karkat wsa quiet for a second before reluctantly nodding. "Fine."

"Great!"

**~Kya~! Hehe, yep, Karkat and John have to babysit!**

**How will John and Karkat handle Terrie? Why doesn't Bonnie question Karkat's appearance? **

**Dang! I got a lot of reviews! Thanks guys! **

**Please Review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Kyaa! Sorry guys! Once again, honors classes give shit tons of homework! Bleh.**

**And I have been so sick to the point the doctors flat out said they are out of options, so I may be having surgery soon. That sucks. But JohnKat makes me feel better, so here I am!**

**It may be short because I have a killer headache. I don't know. I almost never edit author notes, so… yeah.**

**Disclaimer!**

"Ow!"

"Shut up, idiot."

"But it _hurts—ow!"_

"It's your own fault for getting beaten up by a two-year-old."

"It is not—and she's two-and-a-half, for your information!"

"My bad. Egbert got beaten up by a two-and-a-_half_ year old. That makes you manly again."

"Shut up, dude! She was totally vicious!"

"She punched you in the nose and took a bite of your pop-tart. She _won._ That's the sad part. Not the fact that it happened, but the fact that you lost."

"Vicious!"

Karkat rolled his eyes and motioned for John to turn his head to the left so he could clean John's bloody nose better. _At least it didn't give him a black eye…_

John's 'vicious' attacker sat in the kitchen, giggling and eating the rest of John's pop-tarts. He made them because his stomach was growling and Bonnie wasn't back with the Chinese food yet. Karkat wiped the blood away and had John tilt his head back until it stopped bleeding.

"You should have just given her a bite when she asked."

"I was _trying_ to teach her to say 'please!' She can't just demand things!"

"She's a fucking toddler, stupid."

"I know that! I was trying to help her learn!"

Before Karkat could reply, a little head of coppery curls popped around the corner and giggled, scrambling over to his side and hugging his legs.

"Kitty! Kitty!"

"No, say Karkat."

"Kitty!"

"Ugh…"

"Hehe, can you say "Kar-Kitty?"

"John, I swear if you start her on that—"

"I don't like you!"

Terrie pointed to John with a look of distaste. She stuck her tongue out at him and shook her head. John frowned.

"Why don't you like me?"

"Mean! You mean! You no give me a po-tart!"

"You don't like me because I asked you to say 'please'?"

"Kitty, he mean!"

She cried and grabbed Karkat's leg. He picked her up and she snuggled into his shoulder, reaching for his horns. She seemed enthralled by them Karkat held backa purr. He didn't need to let her think he was a cat that she could pet. She seemed really attached to him. This was so wrong! Little kids usually love John! Suddenly he had an idea. He leaned forward and tapped her shoulder. He was met with angry pale-blue eyes.

"Terrie, do you like… _magic?"_

8888

A few moments later, there was a knock at the door, followed by Bonnie's voice.

"Mr. Kat? I got the food!"

"Hang on!" Karkat handed the still-giggling Terrie to John and went for the door.

He opened the door and let her in, taking one of the bags from her. She followed him to the kitchen and they sat the bags on the table. John and Terrie joined them in the kitchen. When Bonnie reached for Terrie, the little girl let out a small shriek and held onto John.

"No! I wanna stay wif dem! He magic, Bonnie! Magic!"

"Magic? I'm sorry, Mr.—John. She seems to think you're magical or something. I'll just take her and go."

She reached for the pouting toddler again, and Terrie reluctantly let go of John. Bonnie sat her down, but didn't let go of her hand. She picked up the bag that contained their own food and turned to leave, but John said something first.

"Well, she's not wrong. I do magic tricks."

"Oh, well, that's neat. What a cool friend you have, Mr. Kat!"

"He's actually my m—boyfriend, Bonnie." Bonnie fumbled with the bag in her hand. John flinched. He hoped they weren't some of those super anti-gay families…

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" She looked at Karkat with eyes that practically begged him to tell her that it wasn't true—_oh…_

"Didn't I tell you that there was a guy I liked? Well, this is him."

"O-oh… well, you said there was _someone…_ I thought… Oh, well… G-good for you! C'mon, Terrie, let's go." She grabbed Terrie's hand and rushed to the door. She looked back at John and frowned. She scowled at him after a second. John opened his mouth to say something, but she disappeared through the door.

"Huh, that was weird. She usually wants to stay for dinner…"

"Um… I don't think she likes me."

"Don't be stupid. She was wrapped around your finger by the third time you pulled a fucking quarter from behind her ear!"

"Not Terrie! Bonnie!"

"What?"

"Dude… I think she likes you."

"No, she doesn't. She's a fucking highschooler!"

"So? I had a crush on Liv Taylor in highschool! Age doesn't matter when you have a crush."

"I think you're crazy. Didn't you hear her say that she remembered me saying that I liked someone?"

"Karkat, she thought you meant her. Didn't you see her face?"

"No. She was looking at you."

"_Glaring _at me."

"Whatever."

"Ooh… Hehe, it's actually kind of cute!"

"Shut up, John."

"When you get married, is she taking your last name? Bonnie Vantas…Hmm…"

"No, idiot. I'm not marrying her. She's only like fifteen. And besides, I have you."

"Aww…. Well, I suppose it _is_ good that you aren't interested. I wouldn't want to have to scare her off, hehe."

"John, you got beaten up by a two-year-old today. You couldn't hurt a fly."

"Hey! Two-and-a-_half! _And we worked it out! We're buds now!"

"I think Bonnie could take you in a fight."

"I am a manly man!"

"That can get beaten up by a fucking toddler."

"Shut up! That totally doesn't count!"

"So, if it doesn't count, I can go ahead and tell everyone? I think I'll do that then." He pulled out his phone. John immediately dove for it. Karkat tried to keep his grip on it, but John got it.

"No! That is not an okay thing to do! Jeez, first my boyfriend laughs when I get beaten up, and then he wants to tell everyone. I feel so unloved." John pouted.

"Just give me my fucking phone back!"

"Maybe… for a kiss."

"John!"

"I named my price."

Karkat rolled his eyes. He stood on his tip-toes and leaned in as if he was going to kiss John. John lowered his hand that held the phone, thinking he won. Karkat snatched the phone and took off for the living room.

"Hey!"

"Haha, fuckass! That's what you get!"

"I want my kiss!"

"No way, Egderp!"

John laughed and took off after him. He caught Karkat by the couch and tackle-hugged him.

"I caught you fair and square! Now you _have _to kiss me."

"Says who? And flying is _not_ fair!"

"Eh, well… It just comes naturally. So… kiss?"

"Fine, idiot."

Karkat kissed John's lips lightly and John smiled. He was going to kiss Karkat again, but the troll stepped back.

"Our food is going to get cold."

"Oh yeah… Yay! That means orange chicken! That is the best kind of chicken."

"Right…"

"Oh, I think your phone's going off."

Karkat looked at the phone that was now on the floor. He didn't even remember dropping it. Sure enough, it was buzzing.

**New txt msg from: SOLLUX CAPTOR**

**Hey KK ii thiink ii fiixed your band. Come get it twomorrow**

Karkat blinked. Well, that was kind of fast. But he was glad. He couldn't meet Damon without his SX-band.

**Txt msg sent to: SOLLUX CAPTOR**

**ALRIGHT. I'LL PICK IT UP AT 11 TOMORROW**

His phone buzzed again.

**New txt msg from: SOLLUX CAPTOR**

**Wow, you're gettiing up early two see me? KK ii'm flattered**

He scowled at his phone.

**Txt msg sent to: SOLLUX CAPTOR**

**HEY ASSHOLE I DON'T SLEEP THAT LATE… ANYMORE. FUCK YOU**

He put his phone in his pocket and joined John in the kitchen again. John had already started eating.

"Who was that?"

"Sollux, and don't talking with your fucking mouth full!"

"Yes, mom."

"Shut up, idiot."

"What did Sollux want?"

"He said that he thinks my SX-band is fixed."

"Oh, so when are you going to pick it up?"

"Tomorrow around eleven. I was going to take my motorcycle—" he cut himself off.

"Your what!?"No point in lying.

"My motorcycle…"

John dropped his fork.

Well, shit.

**Kya! Hehe, I just wanted to do a fun and cute chapter!**

**Any good?**

**Please review! I usually want at least 3 or 4 before I continue!**


	8. Chapter 8

**~Kyaa~! Aw, thanks guys! So many sweet reviews! I love you guys! Okay, so I'm pissed at my school because my counselor told me I could drop my AP World History class (I love history, but with other honors classes, it's too much work, and I have NO free time. I'm super stressed.) if I told her by today. She did a typo. She meant the 12****th****. I told her then too, but she said, "Give it a chance." So I did. I hate it. It's too much work! And now, I am stuck with it for the rest of the fucking year. I am so not happy.**

**As you know, I am pretty sick. It's been getting pretty bad lately. Sorry for not updating often enough, but between being sick, doctors, and homework, I have no time.**

**So anyways..**

**Disclaimer~!**

"So you aren't going to even fucking say anything?"

"…"

"John, I'm not going to apologize for this. I shouldn't fucking have to! It's my choice! I'm an adult troll!"

"… How long?"

"What?"

"How long have you had it?"

"Well… I just got this one about a year ago—"

"_This one?"_

"I built it," Karkat admitted with some sort of strange pride. He somehow thought that telling John about how hard he had worked, that it would help. He knew it was stupid, but…

"You mean you've had _others? _Just _when _did you get your first one?_"_

"When I was sixteen… right after I got my car license, I got my motorcycle license."

"You… You've been _lying to me the whole time?!"_

"Why do you sound like that? You make it sound like I'm doing something terrible! It's just a fucking motorcycle! I've never had a wreck!"

"I just can't believe that you've been lying to me! Karkat, what the hell?"

"I was going to tell you! Just… not yet! I don't dick around with driving, and I always wear a helmet. I don't get what the big fucking deal is…"

"James Carhimo."

"What?"

"James Carhimo. He was the neighbor I told you about! The one that got into the wreck! When I was younger, I used to think he was so cool. I mean, I was only eleven, and he was eighteen. He had a motorcycle, and a pretty girlfriend, and he was just the coolest guy ever! He would even let me hang out with him sometimes. But then my dad told me that motorcycles weren't as cool because they were dangerous. He didn't say that James was a bad guy, just that he should be careful… I thought my dad was being dumb. But then…. A week later, his girlfriend came by, telling me that he couldn't hang out with me anymore because he was in a wreck. She was bandaged up, and bruised. They both wore helmets, but his wasn't strong enough when the huge semi-truck hit them… It crushed his head—even with the helmet. The helmet may have saved his life, but he was damaged beyond repair…" John looked away, and his voice cracked slightly.

"Oh…"

"Yeah…"

Karkat looked down at the floor. He didn't know what to say. John put his hand on Karkat's shoulder, making him look up. He met a pair of cloudy sky-blue eyes.

"Karkat, I just don't want that to happen to you. It's terrifying. They were going to get married, and he just… wasn't _there_ anymore. His body was, but his mind was gone. I… I can't tell you not to have one, but… if you're going to have a motorcycle… please, just fucking be careful, alright?"

"So… you're not mad?"

"Oh, I'm mad. About the lying part. Not about the other part. I won't fight with you as long as you promise that you'll be careful. Do you promise?"

"Yes. I promise."

"And don't lie to me. It makes me feel… like you don't trust me. I want you to trust me. I know it may take a while because of how you were raised, but…"

"No. I do trust you. I always have. No fucking clue why, but I have. It's not going to change because we're Matesprits."

"Good." John got out of his chair and walked over to Karkat, hugging him tightly. Karkat hugged back, somewhat awkwardly. John pulled back and kissed him lightly, then went back to his seat. They continued eating in a semi-awkward silence. Suddenly, John spoke up. "Hey, Karkat?"

"What?"

"You said you _built_ it? How did you do that?"

"Well, I didn't build my first one. I saw someone who had one, and I liked it. I went to get one, but they said that I needed a different license. Sollux decided to go with me, so we both got one. Then, he made a bunch of modifications to his, and I wanted to do that too. But after I did, I wanted to build my own… So, I did some research, ordered some parts, and had Sollux and Equius help me a little."

"Wow! That's actually kind of cool! I would be terrible at something like that!"

"Probably."

"Hey!"

"You said it first."

"You didn't have to agree!"

"But didn't you just say I shouldn't lie?"

"You're so mean!"

"Yeah, well… Take it or leave it."

"Hehe, I'll take it. I love my cranky boyfriend."

"Idiot…" But he hid a smile.

8888

"Why not?"

"I just… don't want to…"

"But we never even got to fucking watch it! We watched your fucking movie."

"I don't want to watch a movie."

"But you brought it up!"

"Well… we can watch any _other _movie!"

"What? Why? You _bought_ this for me."

"I know… But… Last time, you… passed out."

"Are you fucking kidding me? John, a fucking movie did _not_ make me sick. It was just a coincidence!"

"But still!"

"Tell you what; if I die during the movie, you can have all of my shit."

"Karkat! Don't joke like that! That is so not funny!"

Karkat rolled his eyes. John was being stupid. He wanted to watch this movie, so he was going to fucking watch it! He walked over to the DVD player and turned it on, pressing 'disc 2.' He had taken a shower and changed earlier. He was wearing shorts and another over-sized T-shirt. John wondered why he had so many shirts that were so big on him.

"I'm not going to just keel over—"

"You don't know that. Earlier—"

"_Earlier_ I was in pain. I should have said something, but since it had dulled to an ache, I figured that I would be fine… Wait, press pause," John grabbed the remote and pressed pause—even though it was still going through previews (Karkat likes previews). Karkat reached for his shirt and pulled it off. John blushed, and stammered,

"Uh, w-what are you doing?" Karkat rolled his eyes.

"Stripping, what does it look like? No, idiot. My scars were turning red earlier. I thought that I may as well make sure that I really am fine before you go into cardiac arrest waiting for me to keel over."

"I am not—"

"See, they don't look red to me. The pink even faded." Karkat pointed to his scars. John frowned. He didn't mind the scars… It was just that he wished Karkat wouldn't have had to go through what he did. The biggest scar went from his chest to his stomach. It made John cringe a bit inside. _Jack…_

"True… But just in case, I think you should sit by me again."

"Is that really why you want me to?"

"Well, maybe that's not the _only _reason," John smiled as Karkat sat next to him. He pressed play, and the troll leaned on him, like he'd done earlier. John wrapped one arm around Karkat and hugged him close.

**~Kyaa!~ Yes, this was supposed to be longer. But I have JUST been informed that I have a family-thing early tomorrow. I have insomnia, so my mom wants me to try to go to bed earlier.**

**Yeah, this was mostly talking… any good?**

**Please Review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry again, guys! I told you that updates may be a bit rarer because of homework and junk…. Plus I have been in and out of the hospital a lot recently. I took a break from beta-reading so I could focus more on this for a little bit.**

**Missed you guys!**

**Disclaimer!**

John had to admit that _When in Rome_ was actually pretty funny. Karkat loved it. John also entertained himself by watching Karkat's reactions. He loved it that Karkat was just as passionate about movies as he was, even if they weren't the same genre.

When the movie was over, Karkat turned off the DVD player and switched the TV back to normal mode. He did this all with the remote because he didn't feel like standing up. He was very comfortable and warm where he was, thank you very fucking much.

_Purrrrr_

"Hehehe…"

"Shut up…."

"But I can't! It's just too cute! How come I never noticed that you purr until—"

"Because I didn't fucking _want_ you to notice."

"Why?"

"It's not 'cute' or 'funny,' it's just a thing that I do. Not all trolls do it… I didn't want _any _of you idiots knowing. Trolls included—though Gamzee knows…"

"I think it's cute! You shouldn't hide it, dummy! Doesn't it hurt to try and hold it in?"

"Not really. Just makes my throat and chest feel weird."

"Then don't do it! Jeez, you are so weird sometimes…"

"Fuck you."

Karkat frowned though. John sighed and wondered what was wrong. _That didn't actually… He knows I didn't mean it, right? I mean, Karkat's not___**that** _sensitive! _He wanted to ask, but Karkat seemed deep in thought. He decided he'd rather interrupt Karkat's thoughts than have him be so quiet and distant.

"What's wrong? I didn't offend you, did I? I didn't mean it in a bad way! I—"

"John, shut up. I was thinking."

"About what?"

"Tomorrow."

"What about it?"

"Nothing. Nevermind."

"It was _something_! Tell me!"

"No. It's not important. I fucking swear, okay?"

"Fiiiine." John pouted. He was about to say something, but stopped when he noticed Karkat's hand go to his stomach. "Are you alright? Should I call Kanaya? I—"

"It… stopped…"

"What?"

"It was just a small ache, but then it just suddenly…. _Stopped._ It doesn't hurt at all now…"

"That's good, isn't it?" Karkat looked confused and annoyed at the same time.

"I don't know. I just don't fucking know! Ugh, this pisses me off! I have no idea what caused it!"

"Hm… And it comes on so suddenly… Okay, I know we already went over this, but… I don't think you should ride your motorcycle to Sollux's place tomorrow. What if it happens while you're driving?" Karkat gave an exasperated sigh.

"Ugh, _fine!_ I'll just take my fucking car then."

"Do you want me to drive? I don't really have anything to do tomorrow."

"Whatever. Do whatever the hell you want. I just want to get my stupid SX-Band back so I don't have to be stuck in the fucking house all day."

"Okay," John stretched and looked at the clock, surprised to see that it was already almost eight. He thought for a bit. "If I'm gonna stay here, I should get more clothes… But then I'd be going back and forth a lot, and I don't wanna leave you alone… What about… Do you think…." He trailed off, trying to form words.

"Spit it out already!"

"What about you spending the night at _my_ house?" Karkat opened his mouth to reply, but John let his next words out in a rush. "I mean, you don't have to if it makes you uncomfortable, and I—"

"John, I've slept in the same bed as you before. It's just another house."

"I know, but… You haven't been to my house since the _incident_ last month…_."_

"So? Our past selves are both idiots."

"If you're sure…"

"Your bed _is_ pretty comfortable… I'll go grab some clothes."

"Okay! And this time, if you want to hog the blankets, bring your own. Last time we fell asleep in the living room, I froze to death!"

"You still seem to be breathing."

"Barely! So unless you're sure that we're gonna make it to the bed, you may want to grab a blanket."

"Whatever. Just grab that grey one on the couch and let's go."

"Okay," John grabbed the blanket and folded it neatly while Karkat went to get clothes. He also decided to check the weather—not with the TV of course, but with his powers. It was something he'd noticed when they had first beaten the game. He could use the wind and feel for different types of disturbances. It felt nice to stretch his powers like that. He closed his eyes, feeling his power extending. Taking a deep breath, he began to read the air waves that were sent back to him.

Karkat packed his bad rather quickly. He had his closet organized in a way that made it easy to find things, and he didn't really care what he wore anyways, so he just grabbed a shirt and pants and threw them into his bag. Then he went to his dresser and grabbed another pair of boxers and some pajamas. He was about to head back to the living room, but he realized that he had forgotten his toothbrush. He rolled his eyes at his own stupidity and went into his bathroom. He decided to grab his hairbrush too, even though his hair never actually let itself stay nice.

When Karkat entered the living room, the TV was off, and John was standing there holding Karkat's blanket with his eyes closed.

"Hey idiot, why did you turn off the TV? I wanted to check the weather—"

"I already am."

"But—_oh…"_

"Mmhm. I don't think it's going to rain until early in the morning, but I can feel the temperature dropping a bit. It's about to get windy."

"Good."

"Good? What do you mean? I thought you hated it when—"

"I can get away with wearing a thick hoodie in June. It's not exactly something most normal humans do. I can't just go out like this, right?"

"Oh. I keep forgetting…"

"Idiot."

"Hey! Just for that, I am stealing your blanket. Yep, that is a thing that is happening right now. Hello, Mr. Blanket. You have a new owner now. I—Hey!"

Karkat snatched his blanket out of John's hands.

"_Mine."_

"Jeez, I was just kidding! I'm sorry for threatening to take the love of your life back. I'll never get between your love again."

"You'd better not. I love this blanket more than you are worth."

"Hey! That's mean! It's just a stupid blanket."

John pouted and Karkat rolled his eyes.

"Oh wait, I forgot the hoodie."

"Now who's the idiot?"

"Still you," Karkat replied and walked back to his room. He scanned the room quickly. He didn't want something he'd overheat in, but it couldn't be too thin… _Aha!_

John snorted when Karkat left. _He sure loveshis blankets… But what makes this one so special?_ Karkat had left the blanket on the armrest of the couch. John noticed that it had become rumpled and wrinkly, so he decided to refold it. As he picked it up again, he noticed that it _wasn't _just plain grey. It was just faded. He squinted and looked closer, trying to make out the images. _What is that? Oh, I think I see… They're… dragons? They look like…. Oh… _They looked like Terezi's scalemates. No wonder he kept the blanket. She must have given it to him. He also noticed little crabs on it—though they looked slightly different from the crabs he'd seen. _Of course they do. He's an alien, duh. _He knew that Karkat also had a scalemate that he sept on his desk, but he never really seems to talk about it.

John wasn't jealous. It was normal to keep things from exes. He still had some dice that Vriska had made for him! But… He felt like this was different. He wasn't super attached to them. Maybe Karkat still had some leftover feelings for the teal-blooded troll… _No. Stop being stupid. I am not a needy/jealous idiot. It's just a blanket… and a scalemate…_

"Hey," Karkat's voice startled him out of his thoughts. The troll was standing by the door, wearing a very oversized hoodie. John realized that it was the same one Gamzee had worn a few days ago. "C'mon, let's go. What are you even doing?"

"C-coming!" He walked over and ruffled Karkat's hair, earning a grunt of disapproval. He laughed and pulled Karkat's hood up for him.

"Jade called while I was upstairs, that's why I took so long."

"Oh? What did she want?"

"She said I can come over tomorrow and see the puppies. She also said that they were actually maturing fast, so they already can eat regular food, and have opened their eyes. They are slowing down a bit in maturing though, so she thinks they will still be small for a while longer. But I should be able to take one home soon. You wanna come? I was going to go after Sollux gives me my SX-Band back."

"Sure, sounds good! Aw, I can't wait—wait, is Bec going to be there?"

"John , he isn't going to kill you."

"But—"

"And I'll protect you from the ferocious puppies and any toddlers we meet along the way."

"… My hero," John said, rolling his eyes. "I am swooning all over the place."

"Shut up."

**Kyaaa! Okay, I feel like crap and I am super tired… So bye! **

**This was short and crappy…. Sorry!**

**Please Review!**

**OH WAIT~! What would you guys think of me doing an 'ask Johnkat EternalBound' blog? I already set up a tumblr, but I won't do it until this is over because of spoilers. I just wanna know what you think!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Kyaaaaaa! I'm baaaack!**

**I'm so sorry! I have been in and out of the hospital, and had computer problems… bleh**

**Anyways, I have redone my schedule, so I should update more often!**

**HEY GUYS! I DRAW FANART TOO! I have a DA account! It's **Silverclaw986**! Just go on deviant art and look at my sucky pics! I even drew Damon and Jason!**

**I am also still thinking of doing an ask blog!**

**Disclaimer!**

Karkat didn't even realize he had fallen asleep until John gently shook him awake. He was leaned against the window, which made his face look squished. John laughed a bit.

"C'mon, Karkat. You need to stop drooling on my window."

"Mmm… Fuck you…" He hadn't even felt tired when he had first gotten in John's stupid blue car. His eyelids felt so heavy…

"Karkat! C'mon! You can't sleep in here! At least go to my bed!" The troll's only answer was a very quiet snore. "Karkaaaaat!" Still nothing.

John sighed. It looked like he would have to carry him… _But then I'd have to come back for his stuff… Ugh, two trips… I suppose I could try to carry everything at once, but I might drop something…. Probably Karkat or the Blueberry Heaven. Nope, can't chance either one of those…_

He decided that two trips wouldn't be so bad if it meant he could carry his sleeping boyfriend/matesprit to his room without incident. John opened his door quietly and walked over to the passenger door, opening iit carefully. Karkat slumped back against the seat. John pouted at this because now he would have to all but crawl in there to unbuckle Karkat's seatbelt.

John had a small car because he didn't really use it that often. He leaned over Karkat, trying to wake the sleeping troll. He felt around for the seatbelt buckle and once he found it, he pressed it. Once that was all settled, John wrapped his arms around Karkat and carefully lifted him up. John knew that if he was awake, the whole neighborhood would hear him yelling about how John was carrying him like a princess. He chuckled at the thought.

John smiled at Karkat as he carried him inside.

He thought he looked to peaceful.

He was wrong.

8888

Karkat sat in an all-too-familiar place. The same place he had been not too long ago.

The ruins of the house were still placed exactly as they had been, and it was still too dark to see anything beyond that. He wasn't stupid enough to believe he was alone, even if it was silent. He looked around warily, seeing nothing but splintered wood and charred remains of what was once probably a nice little house. As he looked closer, he saw the evidence of his last visit. There were drops and splatters of blood everywhere. All different colors… He swallowed nervously, but refused to show it on his face.

"Hello again, Vantas."

Karkat wouldn't answer this thing. He recognized the voice though. It was Green, the pissy one.

"Deciding not to answer me will not help you, Mutant-blood."

Karkat turned around, expecting to see the Eye thing again, but this time, it wasn't there. Instead, there was… a person? He squinted at the figure, but the cloak the man (he decided that the voice sounded more male like than female) was wearing had a hood that cast a shadow over his fave. The only thing he could see on his face was his mouth, and his pale green eye—which seemed to grow brighter as the time passed. Unable to contain himself any longer, Karkat burst,

"What the hell do you want from me?!"

The cloaked figure smiled.

"_From _you? Oh, I don't want anything _from_ you."

"Then _why_ the fuck am I here?"

"I'm afraid that you have misunderstood me," He stepped forward, Karkat didn't flinch. "I don't want _anything_ for you. As in, you don't deserve anything. I want nothing _from_ you. The only thing I want is your _death_."

"Just try it, you—"

"Try? Oh, I know that I could kill you. Quite easily. But I have to give you the choice… Before I give you the choice, think about this. Who would care if you died? You should have never been born anyways. Because of you, so many people died, and were put through hell even though they came back in the end. You constantly burden everyone around you. You're holding them back."

"I…" Karkat frowned. He was right… "But John—"

"John? Oh, your little boyfriend? It doesn't matter what he said. Do you honestly think he loves you? He's doing this out of pity! Once he gets you on his feet, he'll gently break it to you that he doesn't love you anymore. He just wants to feel like he tried to help the Mutant, boost his good-guy appearance. He deserves better than you, and you know it. You're just too selfish to let him go. You make me sick. You don't even deserve Godtier."

"I… I know… I didn't even make Godtier anyways, don't you know that?" Karkat just wanted to curl up and cover his ears. He could feel the tears streaming down his face, but he chose to ignore them. The man grinned even wider.

"I think we both know that that's a lie, _Knight of Blood. _Oh, I'm not saying that you don't believe it. I'm saying that it isn't true. At the end, right before the final fight, you did reach Godtier. In fact, you were a key part in the game…. But you don't remember, do you? Ah, well, that's good, I suppose. It means that the Game granted your final wish. John wasn't the only player to get a final wish as a prize. Both of you—the _leaders," _He spat the word, as if it were an insult. "—of the teams. You already know what his was—that the universes were restored. But yours was different. Yours wasn't supposed to be able to be done. In order for you to get your wish, a sacrifice was to be made. Of course you offered your life, but that was unacceptable because in order for the universe to be restored, all of the winners had to be alive in it. So instead, you offered your GodTier. And do you want to know what that wish was, dear Mutant?"

"Nnn…" Karkat was shaking and the whole world seemed to shake. His head was spinning. _I made Godtier? No… no, I couldn't… I didn't! He's lying! He's fucking lying! _"Y-you're lying…" But Karkat knew it was the truth. Pictures flashed through his mind—they were blurry, but he could tell what was in them enough to know. "What was it?" He whispered.

"You wished for all of your fallen comrades—and John's, to be brought back to life. With their GodTiers and everything." He smiled cruelly. "That was just plain selfish, Karkat. You only brought them back so you could feel better about yourself. And so your own planet wouldn't shun you. The little Mutant-blood who saved everyone. Doesn't that make you feel—"

"SHUT UP!" Karkat screamed, clutching the sides of his head. He didn't do it for himself! He wasn't a burden! He was… He was… A Hero of Blood.._. I was never a hero…_

"You should just give up. If you don't, then everyone will suffer."

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP SHUT UP!"

**8888**

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP SHUT UP!"

"Whoa! Jeez, I'm sorry! I didn't think my singing was _that_ bad, Karkat."

Karkat sat up quickly, heart pounding. He took in his surroundings with one quick glance. Shitty movies in a pile, sheets with green ghosts on them, blue walls… He was in John's room. It was still dark outside from what Karkat could tell from the window. The human was standing beside him, pouting.

"I carried you upstairs and sang for you, and that's the thanks I get?"

"Maybe if you weren't such a shitty singer… Gah, no! I wasn't yelling at you. I was…. I can't… I can't remember…."

"Was it a nightmare? I know that—oh gosh, are you crying?" John walked over to him and peered at his face worriedly. Karkat raised his hand to his eyes. They were indeed wet.

"I'm not fucking crying, idiot. My eyes are just watery."

"Are you sure, dude?"

"I… I'm fine, John. I promise."

**Kyaa! Ohmygosh, I think this sucks!**

**Please check out my deviantart! Silverclaw986!**

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